May 15, 2006

Kitties!

It's Monday. Again. Yick.

We had a really nice weekend. Friday night we ran errands and cleaned up some. Saturday morning we went to a couple of yard sales and to the church. Carl painted and I bought some fabric. ha! There's a Monday morning shocker for you!

After that, while he was still painting, I went to animal control and looked at kittens. You people should know better than to let me go there unsupervised! I ended up picking out two TINY black kittens (Carl's choice of color for a cat). They're brothers and were dumped somewhere in town. I'm going to see if I can find out where. Anyway, they're not actually eligible for adoption until this morning, so I'm leaving work here in a little bit to go sign for them officially. They are so cute! Bouncy little guys, I think they're going to be a blast to play with. Last night I was knitting, and I really missed having a kitty to chase the yarn.

Anyway, Saturday afternoon we pretty much stayed home and cleaned the house. We couldn't figure out what to do that night, so I finally ran to town and got groceries and rented 4 videos. We watched March of the Penguins (which should really be renamed: Why it's Bad to be a Penguin), and last night we watched The Longest Yard (which was actually better than I thought it would be...very funny).

Yesterday we had our annual Mother's Day barbecue for Carl's parents, and that was about it. Oh yeah, we took naps :) Carl grilled burgers and brats, and I made Texas potatoes, fresh green beans, corn on the cob, a huge salad, and homemade angel food cake with fresh strawberries. Pretty tasty :)

Ok, since I missed the Passion Indicators questions over the weekend, I'll do 3 of them now to catch up:

3. Make a list of your greatest achievements, but be sure that they are things that you enjoyed doing. These achievements may be accomplishments that others do not find particularly impressive, but were important to you. (Conversely, you may have achieved Student of the Year, but to you it was not that big of a deal, or you did not enjoy the process of earning it.) Are there similarities in your list of enjoyable achievements? What themes can you see?

Ok...I had some trouble with this one, trying to think of ANYthing I've accomplished that was significant. I graduated college (so do most people), have successfully negotiated car deals, etc. but I didn't think that's what the question meant. However...the first time I ever quilted anything, I was seriously ambitious. I decided to make 5 quilts in less than a year for Christmas gifts to family members. Not only that, but I made 5 CHARM quilts, out of 4 generations' worth of fabric that I had inherited. I count that as one of my greatest achievements. I also make my own clothes occasionally. That's probably not a big accomplishment for most people, but I enjoy the process and I really love the finished product and the satisfaction of the job being done. So again, we have this sewing theme.

4. What kinds of things are you doing? What topics are you involved in, in which you lose track of time? When you are moving in the direction of your passion, time can easily slip away. Our passion can make us less aware of what is going on around us because we become so focused on what we care about most. What might that be?

For me, this is an easy one. Sewing, quilting, knitting, these are all things that I can get carried away with. There have been weekends when I've come home from work on Friday, disappeared into the sewing room, stayed there until the wee hours of Saturday morning, then gone to bed. Saturday morning I'd get up and go straight back in, staying all day and half the night. Finally Sunday night I'd emerge ready to eat something and happy that I've spent the weekend doing something I really enjoy. However, I can also pass a lot of time reading, not realizing that hours have gone by. And I could spend lots of time playing with my dogs!

5. People who are fulfilling their passion are making a purposeful difference. (By the way, even though you are making a difference, it doesn't necessarily mean you are serving in the area of your passion.) Those who are expressing their heart's desire will find greater energy and focus as they positively impact those around them. Of course, the process of fulfilling your passion will not always be easy or fun. But in the midst of moving toward your passion, there is an inner confidence that you are doing what God wants you to do in the way He wants you to do it. There is an assurance that you are where He wants you, and that He is using you according to his divine purposes. Whether subtly or overtly, you are making a difference. Where is that happening? In what area would you like to see it happen?
Two things:
I run a website for my mom's church.
I make quilts for the homeless.
The first of these is probably making a difference to someone. Maybe someone is looking for a church in her area and they happen to find the site online. Maybe it draws them in and new Christians are reborn. This is what I consider to be a worthwhile cause, but not one I particularly enjoy.

The second of these makes a difference to the person who gets the quilt, but I think it makes a bigger difference to me. I never meet the people who receive my specific quilts, but I want them to know that there is someone out there that cares enough to make something for them that can be a tangible sign of God's love for them. It makes a difference in my life because I am constantly reminded that I need to be sensitive to the needs of people around me, I don't know what they're going through unless they tell me. It's also a continuous reminder that there are a lot of people in this world who are much worse off than I am. I am truly blessed.

Posted by tomiandc at May 15, 2006 09:01 AM